The disclosure relates the field of electronic devices. More particularly, the disclosure relates to a high speed driver configuration that allows an output voltage swing to exceed the breakdown voltage of any individual transistor in the driver.
Processors and associated applications have developed to a level that enable enormous amounts of information to be generated and utilized. The capability of processors and associated applications to utilize vast amounts of information spurs the development of communication systems that enable the dissemination of such vast amounts of information. Communication systems are under constant pressure to increase the bandwidth available for distribution of information.
A communication system can have sufficient bandwidth allocated for distribution of vast amounts of information, but the rate that the information can be distribute across the communication system may be limited by the limitations of the communications hardware. The operating bandwidth of integrated circuits used in conjunction with high speed communication systems has continued to increase to help satisfy the desire to increase communication rates.
Silicon based integrated circuits can improve their operating bandwidth, in part, by increasing the bandwidth of the transistors used within the integrated circuit and decreasing bandwidth reducing parasitic effects. The operating bandwidth of the transistors within an integrated circuit can be increased, for example, by reducing the physical size of each transistor and reducing an operating voltage of the integrated circuit. Reducing the physical size of individual transistors reduces the parasitic effects, such as parasitic capacitance, that can reduce the bandwidth of the transistor. The operating voltage and the breakdown voltage of the transistors can be reduced due, in part, to the physical reduction in size. Although a reduction in the operating voltage can provide some benefits in the form of reduced power consumption, the combination of reduced operating voltage and reduced breakdown voltage can severely limit the applicability of integrated circuits implementing such high speed transistors.
It is desirable to maintain or further increase the operating bandwidth of circuits within an integrated circuit while simultaneously increasing the ability of the circuit to withstand greater operating voltages to enable the circuits to be used in a variety of high speed communication systems.